Do Not Let Big Insurance Defeat You Motorcycle Accident Injury Claim

Americans have had a long standing love affair with the motorcycle. The movie “Easy Rider” which was released in the early 1970s and the re-emergence of the Harley Davidson as a symbol of motorcycle quality re-energized this love affair. Today, hundreds of thousands of American's own and regularly ride motorcycles on roadways that have become increasingly congested with bigger and faster moving vehicles. Additionally, the motorcycle has become bigger and capable of higher speeds. The combination of a fast moving motorcycle on a highway full of large fast moving vehicles, is an accident waiting to happen.

The National Highway Traffic & Safety Administration released a detailed report in
2001 that published the following statistics:

A motorcyclist is 16 times more likely to be fatality injured in an accident than as an automobile occupant.
56% of the motorcycle fatalities were speed related.
60% of motorcycle accidents occurred with a fixed object.
Approximately 50% of motorcycle fatalities were wearing helmets.
65% of motorcycle fatalities occurred during nighttime hours.
The three highest contributors to motorcycle fatalities were negotiating a curve prior to collision, inability to brake in time, and steering problems.

Some motorcycle accidents require the use of motorcycle accident reconstruction experts . Some experts focus on the eqiupment the operator wore or did not wear to defeat a motorcyclists valid claim. This is a quote from just such a site.
" These engineers have learned to gather all the relevant factors that could be involved in a motorcycle accident. The first factor to be examined is licensing. Proper licensing indicates that the motorcycle operator had specific training in both vehicle maneuverability and safety measures. The second factor to be considered would be the operator's protection such as a proper helmet and safety gear. A question to be answered is did the operator wear the proper safety equipment and was the equipment worn properly?

The third factor to be examined is the motorcycle's speed prior to the collision. Although motorcycles may be easier to maneuver, motorcycles take a longer distance than a car to stop. A car at 60 mph will typically skid to a stop in about 171 feet on an asphalt roadway. A motorcyclist who applies only rear wheel braking will require as many as 340 feet to stop on the same roadway at this same speed. The fourth factor to be examined is the design of the roadway where the accident occurred. Was the roadway curved, was the roadway crowned, were their vision problems, was the sun a factor, etc.? All of these factors can be causal in a motorcycle accident and must be carefully evaluated.

After inspecting the involved motorcycle and other involved vehicles, visiting and measuring the accident site, reviewing all the possible contributing causes including the motorcycle's speed, braking skid patterns, reaction times, roadway visibility, weather conditions, etc., the engineer will be able to form a comprehensive opinion of the cause or causes that contributed to the motorcycle accident."

So you see my biker buddies, the insurance industry has numerous people at their disposal to try to deafeat your claim even if you were not at fault for the accident. Yes this stinks, but you can protect yourself by hiring a good motorcycle attorney who knows how to combat their tactics.

One thing that you can do to prevent them from attempting to destroy your claim is wear a helmet. That way if you do end up with a head injury from an accident the insurance company can not defeat your claim by hiring some so called expert to say that if you had been wearing helmet your injury would have been lessened.

I am not telling you that you should or should not wear a helmet, that is your choice. I've included studies on my web cite so that you can decide what you want to do . www.castellilaw.com/motorcycle-accidents.html
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